Clearwire, Sprint finalize WiMAX deal

The WiMAX joint venture between Sprint and Clearwire is finally a done deal, despite a few setbacks along the way, as is the $3.2 billion cash infusion from Comcast, Intel, Google and others. The transaction, announced back in July, brings together both companies’ WiMAX assets under a new company valued at $14.5 billion that will retain the Clearwire name.

The WiMAX network will be branded Clear and should initially deliver average download speeds of 2 to 4 megabits per second. Sprint's WiMAX service in Baltimore, which currently runs under the XOHM brand name, will transition to the Clear name in the coming months as Clearwire converts most of its existing pre-WiMAX networks in 46 markets to standard mobile WiMAX. The new service will be an open standards-based network that will enable customers to use any WiMAX device.